Following a person’s death, the terms of their last will and testament will detail how their assets should be distributed to their family members or other beneficiaries. However, there are some situations where a person’s heirs or those who expect to inherit property may be unhappy about the decisions made in a will. During the probate process, certain parties may be able to contest a person’s will. For those who wish to challenge a will or executors who need to respond to this type of challenge, it is important to understand when and how a will may be contested.

Grounds for Contesting a Will

To contest a will, a person must be an “interested party,” meaning that they are a beneficiary named in the will or a person who would be eligible to inherit property if a person did not have a valid will in place. Will contests must be filed within six months after a will was filed in probate court.

While a person’s heirs or loved ones who believe that they should inherit certain assets may disagree with the decisions about how the person’s property will be distributed to their beneficiaries, this is generally not a valid reason to contest a will. A challenge will be based on claims that the will that was filed in probate court was invalid. Grounds for contesting the validity of a will include:

Business owners have a number of options for structuring and managing a business. Determining the ideal structure can sometimes be difficult, and different types of business entities can provide certain advantages and drawbacks. In many cases, structuring a business as a limited liability company (LLC) is the best option. If you are starting a new business, bringing new partners into an existing business, or looking to change the way your business is structured, you will want to consider whether an LLC is the right choice for you.

Benefits Provided by LLCs

When a business is a sole proprietorship or general partnership, this may provide owners or partners with flexibility, but they may be personally liable for business debts. On the other end of the spectrum, a corporation may provide protections from liability, but owners or shareholders will need to meet a variety of complex requirements when operating this type of business. A limited liability company can offer a middle ground between these options, and it may provide a number of advantages, including:

• Protection from liability - As the name implies, an LLC places limits on the liability that applies to a business owner. An owner of an LLC usually cannot be held liable for business debts. Similarly, business partners and the business itself will be shielded from liability that affects one partner, such as the requirement to pay a judgment in a personal injury lawsuit. However, it is important to ensure that there is separation between the personal finances of an owner and the finances of the business. If an owner’s personal finances are intermingled with their company, a judgment against the company may “pierce the corporate veil,” and an owner may be personally liable in these cases.
• Tax benefits - An LLC may use “pass-through” taxation in which the business’s profits or losses will apply to the members’ personal income taxes. A pass-through deduction is available in these cases, which can provide significant tax savings.
• Flexibility - Members of an LLC are free to establish whatever management structure they choose. This will allow for simple decision-making and easy adjustments to business procedures whenever necessary. Members also have flexibility when determining how profits earned by the business will be distributed, and this may be done based on each partner’s level of investment or involvement in the business or other factors.

Contact Our DuPage County Business Formation Lawyers

If you are a business owner, it is important to make sure your company is structured in a way that will provide you with financial advantages and protection from liability. Stock, Carlson & Asso. LLC can advise you of your options during the business formation process, including helping you determine whether an LLC is the best option for your company. We will make sure you take the correct steps to establish a business structure and formally register your business, and we will also help you meet any other legal requirements that may apply to your company. We can assist with other business-related issues as well, such as creating or updating contracts or resolving disputes through civil litigation. Contact our Wheaton business law attorneys today at 630-665-2500 to learn how we can provide the legal help you need.

When married parents get divorced, their divorce decree will function as a legal court order that details how they will share child custody, and in most cases, one parent will be required to pay child support to the other. Child custody and child support orders may also be created in cases where parents are unmarried. These court orders will remain in effect until children reach adulthood. However, there may be some situations where one or both parents may wish to make changes to these orders. In these cases, it is important to understand what types of modifications can be made, when a parent can request changes and the procedures that will need to be followed to put modifications in place.

Modifications Based on Changed Circumstances

There are a variety of reasons why a parent may request changes to child custody. Parental relocation, in which a parent with primary or equal custody of children wishes to move to a new home, is one of the most common reasons for a modification. However, parents may also request modifications based on a desire for more parenting time with their children or because they are concerned about issues that affect children’s health and safety when they are in the care of the other parent.

Changes to the allocation of parental responsibilities (also known as legal custody) cannot be made within two years after a child custody order has been issued unless these changes are necessary to protect children’s health and well-being. However, changes to parenting time schedules may be made at any time. In general, a parent will need to demonstrate that their requested modifications are necessary because they or their children have experienced a significant change in circumstances. For example, adjustments to a parent’s work schedule may conflict with their parenting time, and they may request a modification to ensure that they will be able to continue spending time with their children on a regular basis.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a huge impact on people throughout the United States, and many landlords have struggled to determine how they can continue to earn profit through leasing property to residential or commercial tenants. While some tenants have experienced financial issues that have affected their ability to make rent payments, landlords were prohibited from performing evictions for much of 2020 and 2021. The eviction moratorium in Illinois has ended, and landlords may once again be able to use the legal tools at their disposal to address the non-payment of rent by tenants. However, there are some cases where landlords may be hesitant to perform evictions, since this may place residential tenants at risk of harm, and finding new residential or commercial tenants may be difficult during the ongoing pandemic. As an alternative, landlords may consider making lease modifications that will protect their financial interests while allowing tenants to continue using the property.

Types of Lease Modifications

Tenants who have experienced financial difficulties will likely be looking to find ways that they will be able to avoid being evicted while also meeting their ongoing obligations. In some cases, tenants may ask landlords to make concessions, such as forgiving a percentage of past-due rent or temporarily lowering the amount of rent payments. In return for these concessions, landlords may negotiate lease modifications such as:

• Modifying the term of a lease or other tenant option rights - A landlord may wish to extend the amount of time a lease will last, or they may prefer to limit the term of a lease in order to seek out different types of tenants. Other options may also be addressed, such as a tenant’s right to renew a lease or their option to purchase the property.
• Additional security deposits - To protect their financial interests, a landlord may ask that a tenant pay a certain amount on top of their existing security deposit, or some of a previous security deposit may be put toward delinquent rent payments.
• Liens against property - A landlord may ask a tenant to agree to have a lien placed on certain assets they own, such as a vehicle or the equipment owned by a business. This will protect the landlord’s financial interests and ensure that they will be able to recover some of what is owed if the tenant is unable to pay rent in the future.
• Government relief - There are multiple forms of emergency rental assistance that may be available to residential or commercial tenants. A landlord may require tenants to apply for state or federal relief or make use of local programs. Any benefits a tenant receives can be put toward paying rent that is owed or addressing other expenses related to the property, such as utilities.

Contact Our DuPage County Landlord Representation Lawyers

Landlords will want to make sure they understand their options for addressing tenants who have experienced financial hardship during the pandemic. At Stock, Carlson & Asso. LLC, our lawyers can help landlords take steps to protect their rights and financial interests, including negotiating lease modifications or performing evictions. Contact our Wheaton commercial real estate attorneys today by calling 630-665-2500.

For many people, the process of creating an estate plan will involve decisions about how a person’s assets will be passed to their heirs after their death. However, estate planning may also address a person’s needs throughout the remainder of their life, including ensuring that they will receive the proper medical and personal care and that their finances will be managed correctly. One way of doing so is through durable powers of attorney. By understanding how these agreements can be used and the benefits they provide, a family can make sure a person’s wishes will be followed, no matter what happens.

Reasons to Create Durable Powers of Attorney for Healthcare and Finances

A power of attorney is an agreement in which a person (known as the “principal”) will give someone else (known as their “agent”) the authority to make decisions for them. A power of attorney for healthcare will address issues related to the medical care a person receives and other personal needs, while a power of attorney for finances or property will address issues related to a person’s income, assets, financial resources, and expenses. Powers of attorney are considered to be “durable” if they contain provisions that state that the agent’s authority will remain in effect even if the principal becomes incapacitated. That is, if a person becomes unconscious due to an illness or suffers from dementia or other mental health issues that affect their ability to make their wishes known, their agent will continue to have the authority to make decisions on their behalf.

Benefits of a durable power of attorney include: